


04/11/22: can i hold your hand

by excelsi_or



Series: to a boy i love right now [31]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:42:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24541783
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/excelsi_or/pseuds/excelsi_or
Summary: Jihoon invites her to an after party and she quickly realizes how much he hates it.
Relationships: Lee Jihoon | Woozi/Original Female Character(s)
Series: to a boy i love right now [31]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1252010
Kudos: 6





	04/11/22: can i hold your hand

_November 4, 2022_

Jihoon’s smile is strained when she catches sight of him. She weaves through the crowd to reach him. He’d invited her to an after party and she arrived late with Seungcheol, because of work stuff.

Wonwoo catches her elbow before she can reach Jihoon. She looks up at her friend and smiles at his fluffy, curled hair.

“I like this hairstyle.”

Wonwoo’s smile is soft, his hand going to the back of his neck. “Really? Gyu suggested it. I wasn’t sure about it.”

She nods her head, ruffling the front of it. “It looks really good on you. Makes you look less… bad boy and more adorable poodle.”

Wonwoo’s eyes narrow. “Is that a compliment?”

“Take it as one.” She looks around for Jihoon, who she has now lost sight of.

“Is Seungcheol with you?”

“Oh, he saw a few friends when we walked in.” She stands on her tiptoes in the direction that Seungcheol had wandered off in. “He was wearing a ridiculous hat.” Said ridiculous hat comes into view. She takes Wonwoo by the shoulders and points over his shoulder towards it. “See it?”

It takes him a few seconds. “Oh god, what the hell is that?”

“Tell him to take it off. I think he’s going to talk to people.”

Wonwoo huffs and rolls his eyes, immediately disappearing into the crowd. Alone again, she searches for Jihoon. He’s standing by the fireplace, surrounded by people. His back is to the flames; as far back as he can go before his shirt ignites. Politely, she moves through the people, ducking underneath lifted drinks and around couples that refuse to separate.

When she reaches the fireplace, she catches wind of the conversation. Everyone there are hoping to collaborate with him. And Jihoon looks more than overwhelmed at the amount of people in front of him. She doesn’t recognize any of them from his company, and a couple of them are pretty big names, like Park Chanyeol.

Now, Jihoon is used to talking with people. He has plenty of friends he’s met through work. However, situations like this, he’s rarely left alone. One of the boys will be around to buffer or take over the conversation when he needs a break.

So when Jihoon catches sight of her again, his shoulders relax. With a few more niceties, she makes it to his side. The conversation is still about him, but the people are slowly shifting towards discussions about ways they can collaborate together.

Jihoon looks to her. His eyes seem exhausted, though he bears a smile. For anyone who doesn’t know him well, his uncomfortable smile and regular smile are quite similar. But there’s an ease to his regular smile, one that reaches his eyes. His facial muscles right now look as if they’re struggling.

“Can I hold your hand?” he whispers.

She nods her head and his fingers fumble for hers before latching on. His palm is clammy.

“Do you guys mind if I steal Jihoon away for a second?” she asks.

The group laughs jovially, probably a little drunk on whatever is in their cups and waves them off.

“Don’t have too much fun!” one of the guys shouts after them.

Without letting go of his hand, she pulls him through the party to the door. The hallway is significantly quieter than the rest of the penthouse, though there are people constantly moving through the space. Gently, she pulls him towards the wall so that they’re out of the way.

“You good?” she asks. Her thumb rubs back and forth gently across his skin.

Jihoon closes his eyes and takes a couple deep breaths. “I forgot how much I hate parties.”

Her grip loosens, but Jihoon doesn’t let go of her hand. She sips her drink that she’d been given as soon as she’d walked in.

“You’re not going to—”

Before Jihoon can finish, she’s pulling a face.

He chuckles and leans his head and shoulder against the wall. “Can we go home?”

“I _just_ got here,” she retorts. She looks down at her dressed up self. “I even dolled up for you.”

Jihoon tips his head back in frustration. “And I appreciate it. You look beautiful, but I realize I hate this.”

“How about we stay for an hour? We dance so that we don’t have to mingle with other people, and then we text the others that we’re going home early.”

Jihoon pouts. He’s not a fan of dancing either.

“We can’t exactly stay in this hallway for an hour,” she chuckles. “Come on, my love, dancing with me for an hour can’t be that bad.”

Sighing, Jihoon trails after her. “Of course it’s not.”

“Just an hour,” she promises. “I’d much rather be on the couch watching movies with you, but I don’t want to waste all the effort it took to dress up.”

Jihoon offers a soft, tired smile. He squeezes her hand. “Okay, jagi, sure.”


End file.
